Menorca

Do you need a car in Menorca? Introduction

Why should you rent a car in Menorca?

What are the main reasons for hiring a car here? Do you just want to drive locally? Do you want to go further afield, or should you even look at taking a road trip?
In terms of factors like the cost of the hire itself, fuel costs, road tolls and parking charges, is it worth hiring a car in Menorca?

€290

Free parking score

31%

#202/300

We really don’t recommend getting a hire car in Menorca.

The only reasons to hire a car in Menorca are the same reasons as anyhwere else, ie a car will give you so much convenience that it’s worth going to all the hassle of driving and parking it on congested streets.

Menorca public transport quick facts

Train score

00%

Water travel score

40%

Overall public transport score

30%

Walking and Cycling Overview

Active travel score

This overall rating considers walking and cycling in and around Menorca.

30%

Apart from this spine road, there really is only one other road heading briefly to the north.

With the island tending to become crowded with visitors in the summer, parking is always a problem, and even if the car gives a bit of flexibility, nothing tends to move very quickly.

If you don’t find the buses to be convenient, it generally much better to go around by taxi, as traffic really is that bad, at least you get out and walk.

Menorca is also a great place to go walking in the north-west of the island and there are also some excellent trails on the southern side.

Poor value for money

The Balearic island of Menorca really is too small to get much benefit from a hire car, and the island road between Mahon, where the airport is also situated and to the west has plenty of local bus services.

Another pitfall to watch out for with Menorca car hire is that you might well find a seemingly attractive rental car deal, only then to see that you have to pick up a car with a full tank of fuel and then return it empty. So if you are only going to drive a few miles each day, that means that you end up giving the rental company a free tank of fuel.

Island hopping

You are unlikely to do a road trip from Menorca, unless you want to island hop around the Balearics. If this is the case, then you will probably find a better range of flights and car hire options at Palma airport in Majorca.

Caronocar was initially set up because I’d heard various stories from places I’d been to about people hiring cars that they really didn’t need to get. In Spain in particular, people found that they picked up a rental car at the airport, drove it to their hotel, and then hardly used it at all. Even in city break destinations like Barcelona, where you might do a lot of walking, a hire car just isn’t that useful. Most of the personal notes I add to destinations are from my own experiences, rather than just from online research. I admit I haven’t yet been to Menorca, but I have been to a few islands which are just like it. From what I’ve researched, this would be one of the last places on earth I’d ever recommend getting a rental car.

I’d be more than happy to be proven wrong. Have you hired a car in Menorca? Have you found that it was worth the effort? Better still, have you been to Menorca at least twice, but tried renting and not renting? If you’ve done that, and you still think renting a car in Menorca is a good idea, I’d love to hear from you.

Ratings

Car rental in - Menorca Need v worth & should!

Do you need a car in Menorca?

Based on comparison with transit and walking/cycling?

Is it worth hiring a car in Menorca?

Based on value for money?

Should you rent a car in Menorca?

Weighing up the above questions, if you are here for the first time AND asking about hiring a car, is it a good idea?

Who is travelling?

Is it worth renting a car in Menorca if I am a solo / budget traveller?

What about for 2 people travelling together?

What about for families?

Where are you staying?

Do you need a car in Menorca if we are staying in the city centre / main resort area?

What if we are staying on the edge of the urban area?

What if we are staying in a rural area?

What is your attitude towards driving?

Should I hire a car in Menorca if I prefer not to drive?

What if we are easy either way?

What if I prefer to drive?

Verdict

What is our final score for Menorca on the Carornocar scale?

1

Should you rent a car in Menorca? The only reason to get a car here is if you have a strong reason to want to do so. In other words, you are travelling as a group or a family, and you want to keep everyone together, and keep all your stuff in the car.

There will always be some reasons why people will want to have a car with them, but these reasons would apply anywhere – even in a city like Singapore! We’d never tell anyone “not” to hire a car – this site is just about ideas and advice, but Menorca is simply one destination where that advice spins as far as it can towards not hiring a car. If you do hire a car here, you’ll probably hire a car almost everywhere, so we have little advice to give. But if you have come here asking if it’s worth it to hire a car here, or if you have any real need to hire a car in Menorca, then our answer is a resounding no, and no!

Would you hire a car in Menorca?

Have you driven in Menorca?
Do you agree with our advice on whether or not it's worth hiring a car in Menorca?